Cian Mahony sucked on a water bottle outside the dressing-room and reflected on a change in career path. Once focused on a desire to be a professional rugby player, he has abandoned those notions, instead settling for a day job with Standard Life and rediscovering the joys of playing rugby.
The 25-year-old's decision certainly hasn't been to the detriment of his game. On Saturday at Temple Hill, it was Cian, playing alongside his brother Conor in the centre for Cork Constitution, that cut a swathe through Garryowen defenders. He bounced would-be tacklers, time and again, offering an irresistible target for his pack onto which to sweep.
One or two handling errors aside it was a consummate performance and one to rival those of man-of-the-match Mick O'Driscoll, Jim Williams, Derek Dillon and Donncha O'Callaghan. Cian Mahony highlighted the fact there is life after professional rugby, even for the young.
"I am enjoying working away and playing at club level. I had a couple of seasons where I was contracted. It's a hard enough life when you're not playing first team rugby, week in, week out. It's not so much holding (tackle) bags but you're always waiting for an injury.
"I like the fact I have something other than rugby, a day job so to speak. I work with Standard Life. About two years ago I harboured ambitions of trying to go that little bit further in rugby but things didn't work out.
"I played a few times for Munster but not enough on a regular basis to merit staying at it. I didn't have any sort of career to fall back on when I left college. It is a case now of trying to build a career.
"Would I be tempted back into a professional career? It's a hard question but at the moment I don't think so. I like the balance I have now. I suppose I was looking to put a structure on my life. When you come out of school there is that rugby progression from Munster under-20s to Ireland under-21s to playing a few times for Munster.
"At some stage there comes a point when a decision has to be made and you have to be honest, which is hard, with yourself. I got the offer of a job and felt that I couldn't turn it down."
Cian Mahony's was just one of several fine performances in what was largely a bloodless coup for Con. Garryowen, quite apart from the raggedness of their performance at times, will rue playing the AIB League semi-final with 14 players for 20 minutes of the second half.
Paul Neville was first to get a 10-minute sabbatical in the sin-bin for persistent offside: he was one of his team's better players when he was on the right side of the sideline. Second row Eoin Kelly, a second-half replacement cooled his heels for 10 minutes after a clumsy challenge from a restart. He pushed Mick O'Driscoll into Ultan O'Callaghan, the result of which was that the latter's game came to an end.
The leg injury looked serious, bringing back memories of last season's final, when injury denied O'Callaghan a place in the starting line-up. Judging by the robust way in which the Con captain celebrated at the final whistle, the injury may not be as bad as it first appeared.
Garryowen, already struggling manfully to just stay in the match, could ill afford to leave their opponents mob handed. The Limerick side will also reflect on the concession of a try to Ultan O'Callaghan just before the interval. Ronan O'Gara kicked superbly to the corner, Frankie Sheahan found Donncha O'Callaghan, took the peel on the burst before offloading to Ultan O'Callaghan.
O'Gara's conversion made it 15-5 at the interval. Con largely dominated the first half, O'Driscoll superb at restarts and out of touch and the continuity game flourishing despite the odd tendency to over kick.
Still, they led only 8-5 as the interval approached, grabbing a try through Conor Mahony - O'Gara kicked a penalty - to a try from Garryowen's fine young second row John O'Sullivan, a move he started and finished, ably supported by Dominic Crotty's well judged intervention.
If Garryowen's defence creaked ominously in the first 40 minutes, it burst at the seams thereafter, as O'Gara indulged in a master-class of place-kicking and the tries flowed through Cian Mahony, John Kelly and Derek Dillon. Leading 43-5, Con emptied their bench and sat back to await the final whistle.
Garryowen's response was a couple of tries from David Wallace and Crotty, one of which Jeremy Staunton converted. The Limerick side boasted too few capable of competing with their opponents on the day: Colin Varley, O'Sullivan, Neville, Pat Humphries and Billy Treacy, the latter late on were the exception to the general malaise.
For Con, their crowning glory has probably yet to come.
Scoring sequence: 7 mins: Conor Mahony try, 5-0; 34 mins: O'Gara penalty, 8-0; 36 mins: O'Sullivan try, 8-5; 40 mins: U O'Callaghan try, O'Gara con, 15-5. Half-time: 15-5. 43: O'Gara penalty, 18-5; 55 mins: Cian Mahony try, O'Gara con, 25-5; 58 mins: O'Gara penalty, 28-5; 64 mins: O'Gara penalty, 31-5; 68 mins: Kelly try, O'Gara con, 38-5; 72 mins: Dillon try, 43-5; 76 mins: Wallace try, Staunton con, 43-12; 79 mins: Crotty try, 43-17.
CORK CONSTITUTION: B Walsh; D Dillon, Conor Mahony, Cian Mahony, A Horgan; R O'Gara, B O'Meara; I Murray, F Sheahan, J O'Driscoll; M O'Driscoll, D O'Callaghan; J Williams, U O'Callaghan (capt), J Murray. Replacements: J Kelly for Conor Mahony (27-39 mins, temp); J Kelly for Walsh 39 mins; J Sheahan for U O'Callaghan 61 mins; R O'Donovan for Conor Mahony 71 mins; J Fogarty for Sheahan 72 mins; R McGrath for Murray 73 mins; A O'Sullivan for Kelly 73 mins.
GARRYOWEN: D Crotty; C Tupiniere, J Staunton, R Niland, K O'Riordan; B Treacy, T Tierney; J Giltenane, P Humphries, R Laffan; J Langford, J O'Sullivan; C Varley (capt), P Malone, P Neville. Replacements: K Keane for Tupiniere 34 mins; D Wallace for Humphries 54 mins; E Kelly for O'Sullivan 54 mins; S McCarthy for Tierney 73 mins; K Laurin for Giltennane 73 mins; C Hartigan for O'Riordan 73 mins.
Sin Binned: P Neville (Garryowen) 43-53 mins; E Kelly (Garryowen) 61-71 mins.
Referee: A Lewis (IRFU).
